Dead in the Frame

 

I'm not sure which Pentecost and Parker book this is...four or five, maybe? It's a fun series. 

While Will is vacationing off the grid with her girlfriend, Holly, Ms. Pentecost is arrested for the murder of Jessup Quincannon. Quincannon is the sicko who has a museum full of memorabilia from famous murders. He threatened to expose a dark secret about Lillian's past in front of a room full of his exclusive club members. Lillian shows up to the event, goes up to his office, and the rest of the guests hear gunshots. She was the only one in the room with him. It looks like an open and shut case, but Will knows her boss would never kill anyone. 

The solution was clever if not a bit contrived (not as contrived as pole vaulting over mud to leave footprints, but hey, not everyone can be Erle Stanley Gardner). 

A Travesty of a Mockery of a Sham

 

I do so adore Woody Allen. I can't believe he's going to be 90 this year. 

McGilligan wrote a very thorough biography on Allen. It was interesting. I learned about his early years writing for TV shows, doing stand up, and appearing on "The Tonight Show" (I went back and watched some clips on YouTube--hysterical). I always forget he has such a strong Brooklyn accent until I hear him speak. 

I was surprised to discover the "Play It Again, Sam" (my favorite Woody Allen movie and yes, I know he didn't direct it) wasn't on anyone's top 10 lists. A lot of folks consider his other films to be funnier. Well, okay. I love that movie so much, although it's Tony Roberts (RIP) who makes me crack up. Every time that man walks into the scene I just start laughing. I'm sure the running payphone gag doesn't resonate today but I still find it funny. 

There are a lot of his movies I haven't watched in a really long time, and some I've never seen, so I have a feeling I know how I'm going to spend many of my upcoming weekends 😊 

Black Tunnel White Magic

 

This one started off with a major red herring, including the title. 

In June of 1990, four teenagers found a body in a tunnel at Chatsworth Park. The park had a reputation for being spooky since it was near Spahn Ranch, which is where Manson and his followers spent a lot of time. One of the teenagers reported seeing figures in black robes running in and out of the trees as they walked to the tunnel, not speaking or getting close, but clearly up to something. The victim was identified as Ron Baker, who was supposedly attending a Magic Circle meeting, a group for Wiccans, earlier that evening. 

Cue the "Twilight Zone" theme, right? Wrong. 

Originally police pursued the Wicca angle, wondering if Ron had been involved in the occult or was used in some sick ritual. Turns out his murder had a much more common motive: greed. 

Ron lived with two roommates (I see no need to type their names, so I'll just use initials): DM and NB. One night the two of them were watching an old episode of "Dragnet" that involved a kidnapping with a ransom. Both guys agreed the perps bungled it and they would do a much better job. Thus a half-baked plan was hatched to kill Ron and demand a ransom from his parents, which they did. 

I have to pause here to contemplate the pure evilness of knowing that their son is dead (because they killed him) and calling Ron's parents and making a ransom demand anyway. Sick, sick bastards. 

From the start, police were suspicious of both men but had no evidence. DM was especially a real nutcase, faking his own kidnapping and going on the run. NB was arrested for armed robbery and DM took advantage to go to the police and offer up testimony against his ex-roommate in exchange for a deal. NB was charged and sentenced to life in prison. All DM had to do was keep his mouth shut and he would have skated, but he couldn't manage that, so he too was eventually arrested, charged, and sentenced. 

Sadly, the governor of California commuted DM's sentence and he's now a free man. NB is also making his own case to be let out of prison early. 

And the evilness just continues. Rest in peace, Ron. You and your family deserved so much better.  

From the Shadow of the Blues

 

I swear I've been reading over the last three weeks. Not *finishing*, obviously, but reading. I'm in the middle of three gigantic books I keep toggling between, trying desperately to finish before their dues dates (spoiler alert: I won't). 

This one was a short and quick read, so I knocked it out this weekend just so I wouldn't feel like I wasn't getting anything finished. I originally put it on hold thinking it was about John Lee Hooker, Sr., the great blues musician, and was slightly disappointed when I realized it's actually about his son. It turned out all right. His story was interesting, too. 

Junior was raised in Detroit in the 1950s and got hooked on cigarettes, alcohol, and heroin at an early age. He spent over half his life in various prisons for stealing and running con games in order to feed his habits. He ended up dedicating his life to God and became a preacher. 

Reading about how he literally robbed everyone in his family time and time again (his mother and sisters used to take their purses with them into the bathroom so he couldn't take money out of their wallets) and they still kept forgiving him and trying to help him was wild to me. I'm really glad he's in a better state of mind now, living and preaching in Germany and hopefully inspiring others to stop their bad behavior. 

Now I just need to find a biography about his dad...